YOUTH ESSAY CONTESTS

The Veterans of Foreign
Wars (VFW) offer three (3) Youth Essay Contests each year; for 2019-2020 they are:

1)
the Voice of Democracy (VOD) Theme is:

"What Makes America Great?”

·
Deadline when it must be received by our Post: October 31, 2019

·
Total Awards: $154,000

·
Top Individual Award: $30,000

VOD
is for students who will be in Grades 9-12 on October 31, 2019. This contest requires the student to make a
recording (thumb drive) and turn it in with a typed transcript. They are never more than two pages. See the contest
rules (links are below).

All entries submitted to VFW Post 3348 are judged by members
of the Post. We pay smaller cash prizes down to 3rd place. There are 7
Posts in VFW District #2 (the District we are in).

The
winning VOD entry (in District #2) is sent to the VFW
Department of Washington (State); they make their own judgment. The student who originates the winning District #2 VOD entry is
asked, along with his/her parents, to attend our VFW State Convention in
mid-January 2020; all expenses paid. At this State Convention, the State winner is announced. The VOD contest is the only one that does
this.

District
#2 honors the top 3 VOD submissions, from all 7 Posts, in early-January 2020,
prior to the mid-winter State Convention. It is usually at the Rainier VFW Post in south Seattle. It is called our "Ice Cream
Social” mainly because we provide free ice cream. This is a very popular event;
students typically bring their entire family.

At
our Ice Cream Social, each invited student is brought up on stage to sit with
the other District winners. They are individually presented their award and are
given the opportunity to read aloud their entry. For 8 years now, I have been
blown away by the depth and beauty of what these kids write.

Should
the District #2 VOD winner also be the State winner, their entry is sent to National VFW. Only the student is allowed to
go to Washington DC, all expenses paid, for the VFW National Convention in late
July 2020.

The
student is escorted to the VFW National Convention by both the State VFW Commander and the State VFW Auxiliary
President. The student will join the VOD State winners from the other 49
States. The parents are not allowed.

Aside from attending the VFW National
Convention, where the President of the United States is usually one of the
speakers, the students are bused around to many of the sites in Washington DC.
From multiple reports that I have personally heard, from parents of former VOD
State winners, this is a life-changing event for each of the students.

=====================

2)
The Patriot’s Pen theme is:

"What Makes America Great?”

{it is the same as
VOD --- they have their reasons!!}

·Deadline when it must be received by our Post: October
31, 2019

·Total Awards: $55,000

·Top Individual Award:$5,000

ThePatriot’s Pen contest is for students who will be in Grades 6-8 on October 31, 2019. This contest calls
for the student to submit a typed essay; they are never more than two pages. See the contest rules (links are
below).

The
winning Patriot’s Pen entry in District #2 is sent to the VFW
Department of Washington (State). State makes their own judgment. The 2019-2020 State winner of the Patriot's Pen contest is announced at the State Convention in June 2020.

The top 3 Patriot’s Pen winners, from each of the 7 Posts in VFW District #2
are invited to the Ice Cream social (see above).

===================

3)
The WA State Youth Essay theme is:

"How I would encourage respect to the
Flag of the United States?”

·Deadline when it must
be received by our Post: October 31, 2019

·Grand Prize: $100

TheWA State Youth Essay contest is for students who will be in Grades 3-5 on October 31, 2019. This contest calls
for the student to submit a typed essay; they are never more than two pages. See the contest rules (links are
below).

The top 3 WA State Youth Essay winners, from each of the 7 Posts in VFW District #2
are invited to the Ice Cream social (see above).

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Links (below) are to the necessary forms that students need to complete and submit. They can be submitted along with the essay to our PO Box 55164, Seattle, WA 98155.